Collection chronicles Hendersonville's past

Family ran hotel when rails brought city into its 'Golden Age'

Carolyn Justus, left, with the Henderson County Heritage Museum, and Diane Sheiry, center, with The Waverly Inn, listen
as Emily Wheeler talks about some of her historic photos of the area on Thursday.

MIKE DIRKS/TIMES-NEWS

By AMY B. McCRAWTimes-News Correspondent

Published: Wednesday, August 28, 2013 at 6:28 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, August 28, 2013 at 6:28 a.m.

Family means so much to Emily Wheeler that she spent many years and countless hours searching for as many details as she could find about the days when her relatives lived and worked in Hendersonville.

The Columbia, S.C., resident even tracked down distant relatives in other states to locate old photographs of her family. She scoured every family scrapbook she could find for old postcards and searched the Internet for any hint of a connection to her family's ties to the area.

The result of her hard work is a large collection of photographs dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. They show Hendersonville at a time when steers pulled wagons on Main Street, and horses and buggies carried guests from the Seventh Avenue train depot to the Wheeler Hotel, which stood on a corner of North Main Street now occupied by Bruce Drysdale Elementary School.

“Hendersonville has been such a part of our lives,” Wheeler said last week as she stood inside the Waverly Inn and gazed across the street to the site where her family's hotel once stood. “Though it seems like Hendersonville has forgotten the Wheeler and Notermans, we have not forgotten Hendersonville.”

Hendersonville soon will have the chance to remember Wheeler's family and their role in the city's history when her collection of photographs is put on display at both the county's Heritage Museum and public library.

The museum plans to include the Wheeler/Noterman family photographs in its exhibit celebrating Hendersonville's Golden Age after the train's arrival in 1879, said Carolyn Justus, chairwoman of the museum's board of directors.

“It ties right in,” Justus said. “It depicts the Golden Age in Henderson County, what we are showing now. The railroad opened Henderson County, and the hotels and businesses boomed.”

The Henderson County Public Library also plans to have a display of Wheeler's photographs in the library's main branch in the fall, said Mark Burdette, the library's special collections librarian.

Burdette said the library also is working with Wheeler to possibly take the digital images from her collection, either as a loan or through a purchase.

“They would be a very good complement to the Baker Barber Collection,” he said.

The photographs in Wheeler's collection either show scenes not found in the Baker Barber photographs of Hendersonville over the years, or they might show some locations at angles different than the Baker Barber photographs.

The Wheeler Hotel opened in Hendersonville in 1895. It featured 100 rooms and a wide porch running the entire length of the building. The hotel was first run by Sam Wheeler, the son of the hotel's builder, D.H. Wheeler.

The hotel eventually changed ownership and became known as the Carolina Terrace before it was destroyed by fire in 1930. It was never rebuilt.

Emily Wheeler's father, Samuel Wheeler Jr., was born in the hotel. He later married Emily Noterman, who lived across the street in a home where Boyd Park stands today.

The Notermans had bought the home from two Anderson sisters, who used the money from the sale of their home to build the Waverly Inn next door.

Members of the Wheeler and Noterman families eventually moved away from Hendersonville and spread across the country.

Emily Wheeler visited Hendersonville last week to share her historical finds with the owners of the Waverly Inn. She timed the visit to coincide with the date that would have been her father's 100th birthday — Aug. 22.

She brought with her more than 50 enlarged, high-quality photographs she inherited from her grandmother and some she discovered over the years while researching her family's history.

“I wanted to be here for my father's 100th birthday,” Wheeler said as tears filled her eyes. “You have no idea how much my father meant to me and to his community. He was known for his community service.”

Wheeler's photos included portraits of her parents and other relatives, and pictures of the Wheeler Hotel and the Noterman home. Other photographs included scenes of guests on the hotel lawn, members of the Noterman family at Triple Falls in what is now the DuPont State Forest, and family hayrides and picnics. Some of the photographs include scenes around town, such as men riding wagons pulled by steers on Main Street, wagons loaded with lumber at a mill, and horses and buggies sitting ready to carry guests from the train depot to the Wheeler Hotel.

One photograph shows a 180-degree panoramic view of both the Waverly Inn and the Noterman home. Waverly Inn owner Diane Sheiry said it was exciting to see Wheeler's photographs of the area from years ago and to be able to see the “little pieces of history” in them.

Wheeler's visit and photographs made her even more interested in finding out whether anyone has photographs of the Anderson sisters, who built the Waverly, Sheiry said.

“I always thought it would be cool to have a picture of the Anderson sisters,” she said.

The majority of the photographs in Wheeler's collection were taken by John Osthoff, a salesman and jeweler who married into the Noterman family.

Osthoff's photographs are more than just ordinary family photographs, Wheeler said. They have the look of high quality photographs often associated more with the professional photography of the time, she said.

Finding and collecting the photographs has been a pleasure and a challenge for many years, Wheeler said.

Now that members of her family no longer live in Hendersonville, Wheeler said she hopes putting her family photographs on display here will help keep the family's legacy alive.

Wheeler said she wants to “remind Hendersonville that once upon a time the Notermans and Wheelers were here.”

<p>Family means so much to Emily Wheeler that she spent many years and countless hours searching for as many details as she could find about the days when her relatives lived and worked in Hendersonville.</p><p>The Columbia, S.C., resident even tracked down distant relatives in other states to locate old photographs of her family. She scoured every family scrapbook she could find for old postcards and searched the Internet for any hint of a connection to her family's ties to the area.</p><p>The result of her hard work is a large collection of photographs dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. They show Hendersonville at a time when steers pulled wagons on Main Street, and horses and buggies carried guests from the Seventh Avenue train depot to the Wheeler Hotel, which stood on a corner of North Main Street now occupied by Bruce Drysdale Elementary School.</p><p>“Hendersonville has been such a part of our lives,” Wheeler said last week as she stood inside the Waverly Inn and gazed across the street to the site where her family's hotel once stood. “Though it seems like Hendersonville has forgotten the Wheeler and Notermans, we have not forgotten Hendersonville.”</p><p>Hendersonville soon will have the chance to remember Wheeler's family and their role in the city's history when her collection of photographs is put on display at both the county's Heritage Museum and public library.</p><p>The museum plans to include the Wheeler/Noterman family photographs in its exhibit celebrating Hendersonville's Golden Age after the train's arrival in 1879, said Carolyn Justus, chairwoman of the museum's board of directors.</p><p>“It ties right in,” Justus said. “It depicts the Golden Age in Henderson County, what we are showing now. The railroad opened Henderson County, and the hotels and businesses boomed.”</p><p>The Henderson County Public Library also plans to have a display of Wheeler's photographs in the library's main branch in the fall, said Mark Burdette, the library's special collections librarian.</p><p>Burdette said the library also is working with Wheeler to possibly take the digital images from her collection, either as a loan or through a purchase.</p><p>“They would be a very good complement to the Baker Barber Collection,” he said.</p><p>The photographs in Wheeler's collection either show scenes not found in the Baker Barber photographs of Hendersonville over the years, or they might show some locations at angles different than the Baker Barber photographs. </p><p>The Wheeler Hotel opened in Hendersonville in 1895. It featured 100 rooms and a wide porch running the entire length of the building. The hotel was first run by Sam Wheeler, the son of the hotel's builder, D.H. Wheeler. </p><p>The hotel eventually changed ownership and became known as the Carolina Terrace before it was destroyed by fire in 1930. It was never rebuilt. </p><p>Emily Wheeler's father, Samuel Wheeler Jr., was born in the hotel. He later married Emily Noterman, who lived across the street in a home where Boyd Park stands today. </p><p>The Notermans had bought the home from two Anderson sisters, who used the money from the sale of their home to build the Waverly Inn next door. </p><p>Members of the Wheeler and Noterman families eventually moved away from Hendersonville and spread across the country. </p><p>Emily Wheeler visited Hendersonville last week to share her historical finds with the owners of the Waverly Inn. She timed the visit to coincide with the date that would have been her father's 100th birthday — Aug. 22. </p><p>She brought with her more than 50 enlarged, high-quality photographs she inherited from her grandmother and some she discovered over the years while researching her family's history. </p><p>“I wanted to be here for my father's 100th birthday,” Wheeler said as tears filled her eyes. “You have no idea how much my father meant to me and to his community. He was known for his community service.” </p><p>Wheeler's photos included portraits of her parents and other relatives, and pictures of the Wheeler Hotel and the Noterman home. Other photographs included scenes of guests on the hotel lawn, members of the Noterman family at Triple Falls in what is now the DuPont State Forest, and family hayrides and picnics. Some of the photographs include scenes around town, such as men riding wagons pulled by steers on Main Street, wagons loaded with lumber at a mill, and horses and buggies sitting ready to carry guests from the train depot to the Wheeler Hotel. </p><p>One photograph shows a 180-degree panoramic view of both the Waverly Inn and the Noterman home. Waverly Inn owner Diane Sheiry said it was exciting to see Wheeler's photographs of the area from years ago and to be able to see the “little pieces of history” in them. </p><p>Wheeler's visit and photographs made her even more interested in finding out whether anyone has photographs of the Anderson sisters, who built the Waverly, Sheiry said. </p><p>“I always thought it would be cool to have a picture of the Anderson sisters,” she said. </p><p>The majority of the photographs in Wheeler's collection were taken by John Osthoff, a salesman and jeweler who married into the Noterman family. </p><p>Osthoff's photographs are more than just ordinary family photographs, Wheeler said. They have the look of high quality photographs often associated more with the professional photography of the time, she said. </p><p>Finding and collecting the photographs has been a pleasure and a challenge for many years, Wheeler said. </p><p>Now that members of her family no longer live in Hendersonville, Wheeler said she hopes putting her family photographs on display here will help keep the family's legacy alive. </p><p>Wheeler said she wants to “remind Hendersonville that once upon a time the Notermans and Wheelers were here.”</p>